MILLBURY 
After his swearing-in ceremony at the Asa Waters Mansion tonight, new Police Chief Kenny A. Howell, 42, a veteran of the New Haven, Conn., Police Department, said he would engage the community by going out and listening.

While he may soon be seen out on the streets and in the schools and Senior Center, tonight the town came to him. Some 50 people filled the mansion's main room, where Chief Howell took the oath of office from Town Clerk Jayne Davolio, his left hand on the badge placed on Millbury's town history book. Another 50 or so packed the hallway and parlors.

Several of the guests were family and fellow police officers from cities such as New Haven and Bridgeport, Conn., and Cambridge, as well as Massachusetts state police. But locals were well represented as they stood in line afterward to meet the new chief.

Chief Howell's daughter Kenya, 22, pinned the badge on her father. He was also joined by his other children Corrine, 18, Kenneth, 16, and Kara, 14, and his fiancée, Ilea Gonzalez.

In his remarks, Chief Howell said he looked forward to working with the community in building a bigger Police Department, one that was highly trained and highly efficient.He asked that in return, the community give their support and trust.

Touching on the Newtown, Conn., shootings last month that left 26 dead, Chief Howell said he thought of his own children in school in a town near New Haven and hoped that the police there were trained and equipped to deal with a threat of that nature.

“Is Millbury prepared?” Chief Howell asked. “I need you to trust in your Police Department and help you train your police officers to deal with that threat. We know from Newtown, tragedy can occur anywhere.”

Chief Howell told the community they could expect to see changes, including follow-up calls from the officer who takes a complaint seeing if there is anything else the person who called to report an incident needed or remembered.

The caller may also receive a call from a sergeant asking how the department handled the incident, a police customer service survey.

Chief Howell said he planned to establish two districts in Millbury, each with a commanding officer, so police could better know the local residents and businesses.

Other changes he planned included police uniform patches with Millbury's town colors and cruisers with the department logo so police could be more visible and recognizable in the community.

Dean M. Esserman, New Haven chief of police, said afterward Chief Howell's adoption of the city's district model, even to a town like Millbury that is one-10th the size, is the essence of good community policing.

Chief Esserman said: “I can think of no challenge that he (Chief Howell) can't overcome. You're getting a top-shelf chief. It's a loss for New Haven but it's a wonderful gain for the (Millbury) community.”

A. Wayne Sampson, executive director of Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association and a principal with Public Safety Consultants, the search firm hired by selectmen, said during the reception that Chief Howell stood out among the candidates for the position because “he had a real command presence in terms of going beyond the professional knowledge. He was able to balance the personal and the professional.

“Chief Howell understands the changes that need to be made as well as the impact on the people of the community.”

Before adjourning the ceremony for the reception in the mansion, Selectman E. Bernard Plante, board chairman, told Mr. Howell's children: “Look around. This is the kind of community we have. They're all here to support your father.”